Bodhirājakumārasutta

Majjhima Nikāya 85

With Prince Bodhi · Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato, SuttaCentral

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Tassa mayhaṁ, rājakumāra, etadahosi:
‘kassa nu kho ahaṁ paṭhamaṁ dhammaṁ deseyyaṁ?
Ko imaṁ dhammaṁ khippameva ājānissatī’ti?
Tassa mayhaṁ, rājakumāra, etadahosi:
‘bahukārā kho me pañcavaggiyā bhikkhū ye maṁ padhānapahitattaṁ upaṭṭhahiṁsu.
Yannūnāhaṁ pañcavaggiyānaṁ bhikkhūnaṁ paṭhamaṁ dhammaṁ deseyyan’ti.
Tassa mayhaṁ, rājakumāra, etadahosi:
‘kahaṁ nu kho etarahi pañcavaggiyā bhikkhū viharantī’ti.
Addasaṁ khvāhaṁ, rājakumāra, dibbena cakkhunā visuddhena atikkantamānusakena pañcavaggiye bhikkhū bārāṇasiyaṁ viharante isipatane migadāye.

Then it occurred to me, ‘Who should I teach first of all? Who will quickly understand the teaching?’ Then it occurred to me, ‘The group of five mendicants were very helpful to me. They looked after me during my time of resolute striving. Why don’t I teach them first of all?’ Then it occurred to me, ‘Where are the group of five mendicants staying these days?’ With clairvoyance that is purified and superhuman I saw that the group of five mendicants were staying near Varanasi in the deer park at Isipatana.

Atha khvāhaṁ, rājakumāra, uruvelāyaṁ yathābhirantaṁ viharitvā yena bārāṇasī tena cārikaṁ pakkamiṁ.
Addasā kho maṁ, rājakumāra, upako ājīvako antarā ca gayaṁ antarā ca bodhiṁ addhānamaggappaṭipannaṁ.
Disvāna maṁ etadavoca:
‘vippasannāni kho te, āvuso, indriyāni, parisuddho chavivaṇṇo pariyodāto.
Kaṁsi tvaṁ, āvuso, uddissa pabbajito? Ko vā te satthā? Kassa vā tvaṁ dhammaṁ rocesī’ti?
Evaṁ vutte, ahaṁ, rājakumāra, upakaṁ ājīvakaṁ gāthāhi ajjhabhāsiṁ:
‘Sabbābhibhū sabbavidūhamasmi,
Sabbesu dhammesu anūpalitto;
Sabbañjaho taṇhākkhaye vimutto,
Sayaṁ abhiññāya kamuddiseyyaṁ.
Na me ācariyo atthi,
sadiso me na vijjati;
Sadevakasmiṁ lokasmiṁ,
natthi me paṭipuggalo.
Ahañhi arahā loke,
ahaṁ satthā anuttaro;
Ekomhi sammāsambuddho,
sītibhūtosmi nibbuto.
Dhammacakkaṁ pavattetuṁ,
Gacchāmi kāsinaṁ puraṁ;
Andhībhūtasmiṁ lokasmiṁ,
Āhañchaṁ amatadundubhin’ti.

So, when I had stayed in Uruvelā as long as I pleased, I set out for Varanasi. While I was traveling along the road between Gayā and Bodhgaya, the Ājīvaka ascetic Upaka saw me and said, ‘Reverend, your faculties are so very clear, and your complexion is pure and bright. In whose name have you gone forth, reverend? Who is your Teacher? Whose teaching do you believe in?’ I replied to Upaka in verse: ‘I am the vanquisher of all, the knower of all, unsullied in the midst of all things. I’ve given up all, freed in the ending of craving. Since I know for myself, whose follower should I be? I have no tutor. There is no one like me. In the world with its gods, I have no rival. For in this world, I am the perfected one; I am the supreme Teacher. I alone am fully awakened, cooled, quenched. I am going to the city of Kāsi to roll forth the Wheel of Dhamma. In this world that is so blind, I’ll beat the drum of freedom from death!’

‘Yathā kho tvaṁ, āvuso, paṭijānāsi arahasi anantajino’ti.
‘Mādisā ve jinā honti,
ye pattā āsavakkhayaṁ;
Jitā me pāpakā dhammā,
tasmāhamupaka jino’ti.
Evaṁ vutte, rājakumāra, upako ājīvako ‘hupeyyapāvuso’ti vatvā sīsaṁ okampetvā ummaggaṁ gahetvā pakkāmi.

‘According to what you claim, reverend, you ought to be the Infinite Victor.’ ‘The victors are those who, like me, have reached the ending of defilements. I have conquered bad qualities, Upaka— that’s why I’m a victor.’ When I had spoken, Upaka said: ‘If you say so, reverend.’ Shaking his head, he took a wrong turn and left.

Atha khvāhaṁ, rājakumāra, anupubbena cārikaṁ caramāno yena bārāṇasī isipatanaṁ migadāyo yena pañcavaggiyā bhikkhū tenupasaṅkamiṁ.
Addasaṁsu kho maṁ, rājakumāra, pañcavaggiyā bhikkhū dūratova āgacchantaṁ.
Disvāna aññamaññaṁ saṇṭhapesuṁ:
‘ayaṁ kho, āvuso, samaṇo gotamo āgacchati bāhulliko padhānavibbhanto āvatto bāhullāya.
So neva abhivādetabbo, na paccuṭṭhātabbo, nāssa pattacīvaraṁ paṭiggahetabbaṁ;
api ca kho āsanaṁ ṭhapetabbaṁ—sace so ākaṅkhissati nisīdissatī’ti.
Yathā yathā kho ahaṁ, rājakumāra, pañcavaggiye bhikkhū upasaṅkamiṁ tathā tathā pañcavaggiyā bhikkhū nāsakkhiṁsu sakāya katikāya saṇṭhātuṁ.
Appekacce maṁ paccuggantvā pattacīvaraṁ paṭiggahesuṁ. Appekacce āsanaṁ paññapesuṁ. Appekacce pādodakaṁ upaṭṭhapesuṁ.
Api ca kho maṁ nāmena ca āvusovādena ca samudācaranti.

Traveling stage by stage, I arrived at Varanasi, and went to see the group of five mendicants in the deer park at Isipatana. The group of five mendicants saw me coming off in the distance and stopped each other, saying, ‘Here comes the ascetic Gotama. He’s so indulgent; he strayed from the struggle and returned to indulgence. We shouldn’t bow to him or rise for him or receive his bowl and robe. But we can set out a seat; he can sit if he likes.’ Yet as I drew closer, the group of five mendicants were unable to stop themselves per their own agreement. Some came out to greet me and receive my bowl and robe, some spread out a seat, while others set out water for washing my feet. But they still addressed me by name and as ‘reverend’.

Evaṁ vutte, ahaṁ, rājakumāra, pañcavaggiye bhikkhū etadavocaṁ:
‘mā, bhikkhave, tathāgataṁ nāmena ca āvusovādena ca samudācaratha;
arahaṁ, bhikkhave, tathāgato sammāsambuddho.
Odahatha, bhikkhave, sotaṁ. Amatamadhigataṁ ahamanusāsāmi, ahaṁ dhammaṁ desemi.
Yathānusiṭṭhaṁ tathā paṭipajjamānā nacirasseva—yassatthāya kulaputtā sammadeva agārasmā anagāriyaṁ pabbajanti, tadanuttaraṁ—brahmacariyapariyosānaṁ diṭṭheva dhamme sayaṁ abhiññā sacchikatvā upasampajja viharissathā’ti.
Evaṁ vutte, rājakumāra, pañcavaggiyā bhikkhū maṁ etadavocuṁ:
‘tāyapi kho tvaṁ, āvuso gotama, iriyāya tāya paṭipadāya tāya dukkarakārikāya nājjhagamā uttari manussadhammā alamariyañāṇadassanavisesaṁ; kiṁ pana tvaṁ etarahi bāhulliko padhānavibbhanto āvatto bāhullāya adhigamissasi uttari manussadhammā alamariyañāṇadassanavisesan’ti?
Evaṁ vutte, ahaṁ, rājakumāra, pañcavaggiye bhikkhū etadavocaṁ:
‘na, bhikkhave, tathāgato bāhulliko na padhānavibbhanto na āvatto bāhullāya.
Arahaṁ, bhikkhave, tathāgato sammāsambuddho.

So I said to them, ‘Mendicants, don’t address me by name and as “reverend”. The Realized One is Perfected, a fully awakened Buddha. Listen up, mendicants: I have achieved freedom from death! I shall instruct you, I will teach you the Dhamma. By practicing as instructed you will soon realize the supreme culmination of the spiritual path in this very life. You will live having achieved with your own insight the goal for which gentlemen rightly go forth from the lay life to homelessness.’ But they said to me, ‘Reverend Gotama, even by that conduct, that practice, that grueling work you did not achieve any superhuman distinction in knowledge and vision worthy of the noble ones. How could you have achieved such a state now that you’ve become indulgent, strayed from the struggle and fallen into indulgence?’ So I said to them, ‘The Realized One has not become indulgent, strayed from the struggle and fallen into indulgence. The Realized One is Perfected, a fully awakened Buddha.

Odahatha, bhikkhave, sotaṁ. Amatamadhigataṁ ahamanusāsāmi, ahaṁ dhammaṁ desemi.
Yathānusiṭṭhaṁ tathā paṭipajjamānā nacirasseva—yassatthāya kulaputtā sammadeva agārasmā anagāriyaṁ pabbajanti, tadanuttaraṁ—brahmacariyapariyosānaṁ diṭṭheva dhamme sayaṁ abhiññā sacchikatvā upasampajja viharissathā’ti.
Dutiyampi kho, rājakumāra, pañcavaggiyā bhikkhū maṁ etadavocuṁ:
‘tāyapi kho tvaṁ, āvuso gotama, iriyāya tāya paṭipadāya tāya dukkarakārikāya nājjhagamā uttari manussadhammā alamariyañāṇadassanavisesaṁ; kiṁ pana tvaṁ etarahi bāhulliko padhānavibbhanto āvatto bāhullāya adhigamissasi uttari manussadhammā alamariyañāṇadassanavisesan’ti?
Dutiyampi kho ahaṁ, rājakumāra, pañcavaggiye bhikkhū etadavocaṁ:
‘na, bhikkhave, tathāgato bāhulliko na padhānavibbhanto na āvatto bāhullāya.
Arahaṁ, bhikkhave, tathāgato sammāsambuddho.
Odahatha, bhikkhave, sotaṁ. Amatamadhigataṁ ahamanusāsāmi, ahaṁ dhammaṁ desemi.

Listen up, mendicants: I have achieved freedom from death! I shall instruct you, I will teach you the Dhamma. By practicing as instructed you will soon realize the supreme culmination of the spiritual path in this very life. You will live having achieved with your own insight the goal for which gentlemen rightly go forth from the lay life to homelessness.’ But for a second time they said to me, ‘Reverend Gotama … you’ve fallen into indulgence.’ So for a second time I said to them, ‘The Realized One has not become indulgent …’

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